Royal Rumblings
by BornThisWay
Summary: Melina and John Morrison split before she starting 'seeing' Batista. She handed their break up rather well. He didn't handle it at all. Rated M for gratuitous language use. Cameo by Shawn Michaels.


Me again. I know I'm posting a tonne, but that's because after a two year absence I have so much material I can use!

Bought the Royal Rumble 2008 DVD yesterday and this came to me. I'm so glad I don't know who coined the term 'JoMo', it's God awful.

I own nothing you recognise and I'd sell my soul for a spot on the WWE Creative team.

* * *

"YOU'VE GOT TO BE FUCKING KIDDING ME!"

World Wrestling Entertainment staff winced as they scurried down the hallways of Madison Garden, quite frankly a little terrified by the noises emanating from John Morrison and the Miz's locker room. Not that the Miz was anywhere to be seen; anticipating the mood his tag team partner was bound to be in after their match he'd grabbed his gear as soon as he had exited the ring and hightailed it elsewhere. Now, John was taking his temper out on his surroundings and anyone who would listen.

The 2008 Royal Rumble was over.

John Cena had won. John Morrison was fine with that.

He'd had a decent run.

He had entered at number six and was still there when the Undertaker and then Shawn Michaels had been eliminated. Mark Henry had entered at number twenty-five and the ring was full of Superstars and John was there, working his arse off to not get eliminated by Viscera.

He hadn't eliminated anyone.

Kane had eliminated him after Chavo Guerrero had entered.

Again, John Morrison was fine with that.

He had even endured Sign Guy's pathetic comments about his current lack-of sex life and former relationship. Ugh. Sign Guy. Was there a reason he always seemed to target _him_? Or … Did that guy even have a job?

What he wasn't okay with was the way that Batista had continually targeted him in the ring. John would be working a spot with Shawn. He would turn around and then suddenly Dave was there. He'd run a double team with the Miz. Dave was there.

He hit John over the head.

He tried to throw him over the top rope.

He'd speared him in the centre of the ring.

The first time Dave had approached him and attempted to rip him a new one, he had accepted it. The second time he brushed it off as a coincidence. The third time, he was pissed.

"Who the FUCK does that PRICK think HE IS?!"

A chair flew across the room and clattered to the floor as John roared his disgust. The bench inside the room had taken the brunt of his assault moments earlier. Splintered, it lay broken in half in front of the far wall, surrounded by clothing, shoes, water bottles and a broken light fixing. His coat was ripped, the threads barely hanging on.

"Of all the low down disgusting things to do," John seethed as he paced back and forth. "At one point or another there were twenty-nine other guys in that ring. Did he care? No. Did he try and rip into anyone else? No. The bastard just kept focussing on ME!"

Spinning around, John introduced his fist to the wall, leaving a nice sized hole for the next occupant to admire. A chunk of wood embedded itself in his knuckle and he ripped it out in a rage, chucking it across the room so hard it rebounded and almost smacked him in the face. The blood dripping from his hand matched the angry red flush scrawled across his face, eyes wide with rage. The scowl affixed on his face felt like at this point that it might be permanent. Slumping down against the wall he fell to the floor, his hand oozing as he went.

"He's already STOLEN my fucking GIRLFRIEND. What the FUCK else does he WANT?!"

A knock sounded, interrupting his furious musings.

"WHAT?!"

A muffled greeting was heard outside the door. "Is it safe to come in?"

"Is there an 'enter at your own risk' sign on the door?" John bit back snidely.

"No, but by the looks of things there probably should be," Shawn Michaels answered in bemusement as he surveyed the broken down shell of the room. "Redecorating?"

John snorted. "Spring cleaning."

Shawn rolled his eyes. "It's still snowing outside. Though it never hurts to get in early I guess." When John failed to respond, Shawn shut the door carefully behind him and leant against the frame. "You want to talk about it?"

"About what?" Morrison played dumb.

"Gee, I don't know," Shawn drawled. "The state of the economy? War on Terror? Global Warming?"

"How about how pathetic a man in his forties looks wearing a straw hat and a bib to the ring on a regular basis?" The former ECW Champion shot back scathingly. He raised an eyebrow in Shawn's direction, daring him to challenge what he was saying.

Shawn paused for a moment and then shrugged. "Okay. I deserve that."

"Yep-p." John agreed, putting a heavy emphasis on the 'p'.

"Okay, look." Shawn stepped over various items of debris before crouching down in front of the younger wrestler. "I'm not going to try and understand what you're going through. I know that you've been dealt a harsh hand lately and that's why I'm not going to say anything about this little tantrum to the higher ups. Consider this your get out of jail free card. All I'm asking is for an explanation."

"I don't owe you anything," the Los Angeles native said petulantly. "Least of all an explanation."

"See, that's where you're wrong," the Heartbreak Kid broke in. "I was more than happy to work with you in that ring today. In case you didn't notice, I tried to take the heat off you for the majority of the match. You're a decent talent. You sell well, you're not afraid to put other opponents over and you're a clean worker. Your moves are crisp and even though Management stuck you with that cretin Miz you're done a stellar job in helping him become a passable worker. Don't think I haven't heard people saying you're the next me. I have. Quite frankly, at first I was a little offended."

"Gee, thanks."

"Shut up John," Shawn glared. "I wasn't finished. There are few who can do what we do. There are even less that manage to capture my attention because they truly love this business. You're one of the few. Don't screw this up."

John opened his mouth to speak but thought better of it. The blood flowing from his hand had slowed and was beginning to congeal. Sighing, he surveyed the carnage he had inflicted upon the fittings around him. Suddenly, he winced. Paying for the repairs here was going to set him back a bit.

"I don't get it."

Shawn stopped clearing the rubbish around him and sat down on the floor across from his friend. "Get what?"

John let out a heady breath. "Dave. Why can't he just leave me alone? He's got Melina. What else does he want?"

"He wants to win," Shawn replied simply. "He's trying to get into your head and you're letting him."

"How the hell can I not?" The Raw Superstar groaned in frustration as he ran his hands through his hair. "Everywhere I look, he's there. He's casing me in the ring. He's flaunting his relationship with Melina at every possible avenue. If he doesn't have her trapped in the arms that steroids built he's dragging her around like a rag doll!"

Shawn regarded him cautiously. "You think he's forcing her to be with him?"

"Yes? No? I don't know!" John griped with frustration. "I know that we grew apart, Melina and I. I know that I took her for granted. Took our relationship for granted. I also know that even though we're not together anymore, that I would do anything for that woman and she knows it. I hate that he's managed to swoop in and take her away from me and that he did it without me even noticing!"

"You still love her."

"Of course I do!" John exploded as he jumped to his feet. "She's in my every frigin' thought. She was my best friend! For five years we've travelled together and during that time she's been my everything! She still wants to be friends too. She's convinced that by being honest and open with each other that we can salvage our 'friendship'," he concluded with crude quotation marks. "I don't want to hear it! I know her, know everything about her, know her body better than my own. She expects me to sit idly by as she tells me everything about her relationship with him?! I can't even stomach picking up the phone anymore when she rings! It's incomprehensible! Why would she do that?!"

"Because she cares," Shawn spoke matter-of-factly. "Melina came to see me this morning. Before the Rumble. You wanna know why?"

"Not really," the Guru of Greatness grumbled sullenly.

"She asked for a favour. She had a feeling Dave would target you and she asked me if I would do my best to keep an eye on you. I knew you'd make me look good out there. I wasn't going to say no."

John rolled his eyes. "That doesn't mean anything. Melina did that because she felt obligated."

"She asked Taker the same thing," Shawn remarked calmly. "Mark hates Dave, so obviously, he was only to happy to help. He asked her why she was bothering. He knew as well as she did that Dave would see a target on your back. She knows she did the wrong thing by you John. Melina knows she screwed up. Whether it be as a friend or more, she still cares for you."

"She sure has a funny way of showing it."

"You know what John? Right now I don't blame her for leaving your sorry arse," Shawn spat scathingly. "You're acting like a child. Did it occur to you that that might be the reason she left? You're better than this. Don't let Dave get to you! Focus on pulling yourself out of this funk and work on being the guy that Melina FELL IN LOVE WITH!"

"WHAT IF I CAN'T?" John burst out. "What if I don't know HOW to be that guy anymore? What if I can NEVER be that guy again? What if Melina falls in LOVE with HIM and she gives up everything she's ever worked for in this business for HIM? I could NEVER forgive MYSELF!"

The two men stood nose to nose in the centre of the room, John breathing heavily as Shawn held strong, unwilling to let his temper get the better of him also. "Don't start me Michaels," John growled. "I swear I'll-"

"You'll what?" Shawn taunted. "You'll end me? I'd love to see you try pretty boy."

"-kill you!"

A feral snarl ripped through the air, John about to launch himself at Shawn before a knock on the door cut him off.

"WHAT?!'

The door flew open, two pissed off women standing on the other side. Stephanie McMahon stood stoic, unflinching as she scanned the broken wreckage of the room. "Just tell me where to send the bill Morrison."

John raised his chin defiantly. "It would be my pleasure."

Stephanie snorted. "Shawn, the 'King of Kings' requests your presence. Now, please."

Shawn looked at Stephanie and her companion before glancing back at John. The other man nodded, looking absolutely defeated. "Fine. Come and find me before you leave." Stepping over assorted crap he acknowledged the other woman on his way out with a curt nod. "Melina."

The young Diva ignored their exit completely. Melina blinked, unable to believe the carnage she was seeing. There was no way the man she knew could have done this. "What the hell happened to you?" She whispered in disbelief. "This is insane."

John glowered in her direction. "I'm pretty sure we both know what and why it happened. I'm sure you were watching the Rumble."

"I was," she admitted as she stepped into the room and quietly closed the door behind her. "What happened out there was uncalled for. Dave had no right to-"

"Damn right he didn't."

"Would you let me finish?" Melina demanded hotly. John contemplated flipping her off but instead settled for rolling his eyes instead. "Dave had no right to do what he did out there. There were other guys in that ring yet he consistently kept confronting you for no apparent reason. I thought he was a better person than that."

"Oh yeah. Dave's the better person. When he's not seducing half the female's on the roster and making life awkward for everyone," he muttered darkly. "I love you like crazy Melina and I always will, but don't expect me to accept you back with open arms when he drops you for the next twenty-something on his list."

Melina's voice was cold. "How dare you?"

"How dare I?" John echoed. "You know what Melina? Of the two people in this room right now, I feel like I'm the one who can justify my actions tonight. What's your excuse?"

"I don't have one. I haven't done anything wrong John. Our relationship fell apart because we grew apart. We were spending all of our time together on the road yet somewhere along the line we stopped being a couple and we went back to being friends. I am allowed to date whoever I want. When Dave asked me out, I accepted. That's my story and I'm sticking to it."

John stopped still. The shirt he was been attempting to pull on feel to the floor as he met her gaze for the first time. She flinched, unnerved by the sheer amount of pain in his expression. "I'm glad you found it so easy to put the last four and a half years behind you. I can't do that. I never stopping loving you or wanting you. I've still got to come into work every week and see you draped across his lap while I'm sitting alone on the sidelines. When you walked away, you took a piece of me with you and every time I see the two of you together, it feels like you're rubbing it in my face."

"Then do something about it!" Melina snapped in frustration.

"You don't think I've tried?" John cried. "Do you want me to explain to you, in excruciating detail, the amount of dates I've been set up by the guys? Do you want to hear about how I asked to be swapped shows? How I was tempted to quit altogether? Why else do you think you were sent to Smackdown? It wasn't because I wanted you gone. I needed you gone! When Stephanie failed to grant my request she moved you because she thought she was helping us both!"

"Stephanie had me moved?" Melina asked slowly. "Why would she do that to me?"

"She did it so you could be with your precious Botchtista! Damn it Mel, the guy doesn't even know how to wrestle! Notice how after we split I started winning titles? Think about it. We weren't together anymore. We gave them what they wanted. Those rumours all of those wrestling sites used to post about us years back? They were true. I was holding you back! All of a sudden I was ECW Champion, then a Tag Team Champ. I was finally accomplishing what I set out to do here. But God, I would give them all back to get your fucking boyfriend off my back."

His ex-girlfriend looked absolutely flabbergasted. "I'm .. I'm sorry. I had no idea you felt this way."

"How could you? You were so set on us being best buddies again that you couldn't see I was almost dying inside," he sighed with aggravation. "I can't do it. I can't answer the phone anymore and listen to you prattle on about that baboon. I can't talk to you in the halls without wondering if I should be watching my back. I can't be near you and not touch you. Not hold you. It feels almost unnatural to me," he swallowed. "I know you think honesty is the best thing for us so I'm being honest with you. It's all or nothing for me Melina. Every morning I wake up and pray that the last year has just been one giant nightmare. Then I roll over and know its not, because your side of the bed is empty."

"John-"

"No. You can't ask Shawn and Mark to baby-sit me in the ring. Dave is your boyfriend. If you have a problem with the way he treats me, you speak to him about it. Better yet, tell him that I have a problem with the way he treats me. Tell him congratulations, he wins."

"How the hell has he won?" Melina fretted. "I'm not a prize in whatever twisted game the two of you are playing!"

"No, you're not." John took a step toward her, his arms winding their way around her waist. She began to object but held her tongue. It still felt right. She had missed this feeling. "You're not a commodity Melina and I refuse to treat you like one. You are so much more than that. I know that the reason we grew apart is partly my fault. I know that I was part of the reason you left. I know I don't want to be the person you regret."

Her eyes fluttered closed as he pressed his forehead to hers, her arms unconsciously winding around his shoulders. John leant forward and firmly pressed his lips to hers, taking her bottom lip in between his. Without a moment's hesitation Melina began to move her mouth against his. Together they stood, entwined before he had the strength to pull back. He drew a thumb over her swollen lips and kissed her for a final time.

"That's why I'm walking away. I refuse to sink down to his level and play the game."

He took a step back before he paused to actually look at her.

She was shivering.

Silently, he moved to his bag to take out the clothes he had planned to wear when he left the arena. Taking out his dress shirt he dressed her as he had down countless times before, her outfit now completely obscured as she swam in the black material. Buttoning it around her, he kept his eyes to the ground.

"He already has you Melina"

Before she knew what has happening he was at the exit.

"I have nothing else I can give."


End file.
